Bow-facing oar.



A. I. MENGHBR.

BOW PAGING OAR.

APPLICATION FILED AUG. 2e, 1911.

19033,??20, Patented July 23,1912.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

A. I. MENCHER.

BOW FAGING OAR.

APPLICATION FILED AUG. 2s, 1911.

1.933.720. Patented July 23, 1912.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

7 9 l l jgfl atto/mm1;

ABRAHAM I. MENGHEB., or imw Yeux-, N. Y.

BOW-FACING OAR.

Specication of Letters Patent.

applicati@ mea August 2e, 1911.A serial No. 646,097.

To aZZ whomz't may concern Be it knownthat I, ABRAHAM I. MENQHER,

a citizen of the United States, residing at,

New York, in the county of New York and State lof New York, have invented new and useful Improvements in Bow-Facing Oars, of which the following is a specification.

A This invention relates to bow-facing oars, and has for an object to provide an oar for row boats, whereby the oarsman may sit facing the bow of the boat while rowing and to provide a construction whereby the boat can be propelled with a minimum expenditure of power and with more rapidity.

Other objects of the invent-ion are to provide means whereby the oar can be readily manipulated to move the spoon thereof into andout of the water; further, the. construction of a sectional oar can be quickly adjusted to cause the spoon thereof to lie atl one side of the boat and substantially parallel thereto to facilitate the passage of the boat through narrow passageways.

In the drawings, forming a portion of this specification and in which like numerals'of reference indicate similar parts in the several views Figure 1 is a perspective view of a portion of aboat showing my improved bow-facing oar operatively applied to the gunwale or top rail of the boat, the spoon portion of the oar being disposed substantially parallel to the gunwale and showing in dotted lines the effective stroke positions of thespoon. Fig. 2 is a perspective view of a portion of a gunwale of the boat showing the oar detached therefrom and illustrating the construction of the oar lock. Fig. isaperspective view of the oar lock removed from the gunwale. Fig. 4' is a perspective view of the oar and the support therefor showing the cover plate of ythe support removed. Fig. 5 is a partly inverted perspective view ofthe oar. Fig. 6 is a perspectiveview of the fulcrum post.v Fig. 7 is a section on line 7-7 of Fig. 1. Fig. 8 is -a section on line 8 8 of Fig. 1.

It'l will of coursebe understood that the boat, in practice, will be equipped with two oars or any suitable number of pairs according to the character or type of the boat.

.The boat A herein shown has its gunwale provided with an oar lock which includes a bearing plate 1 which is securedl to the gunwale by the fastening 2. The plate 1 `is preferably provided at its center with a depending socket 3 whichy extends into a c orrespondingly formed socket in the gunwale. The socket 3 is squareor angular in transverse section and removably fitted therein is a correspondingly formed fulcrum post 4, the to'p of thepost having formed thereon a head 5 which is provided with -a` Patented July 23, 1912,V

curved surface 6 for a purpose to be hereinafter described.

The oar comprises the spoon orblade see-f tion 7 and the handle sectlon 8. These-sections are mounted and securely fixed in be+ tween the bracket arms 9 of the companion members 10. These members are substantially identically constructed and they are provided with intermeshing 'toothed surf faces 11. These members 10 are provided with ysuitable bearing portions 12 which are apertured centrally, at 13, for the reception of the bearingl bolts 14. These bolts have their lower ends extended through the bearing member or support 15, and as illustrated, the upper threaded ends of the bolts are extended through a shield or cover plate 16 andlitted thereto are the retaining nuts 17. The said support 15 and cover plate 16 p are reduced at their intermediate portions providing concaved side edges 15 and 16. To prevent foreign matter from entering between the intermeshing contacting surfaces of the members 10, I provide the shield plate 16 with depending guard flanges 18 which extend in the direction of the supporting plate 15. The said guard ianges in the form shown in the drawing comprise concavo-convex plates formed integral with the said concaved portion of the said support, the free top edge of said flanges fitting flush with the concaved edge l16 of said shield 16. This structure closely houses the intermeshing portions of said gears, and thereby, as before stated, prevents foreign matter from entering the intermeshing portions of said gears. Washers 19 are interposed between the members 10 andthe support 15 and shield members 16 respectively.

and through the head 5 of the fulcrum post. The curved surface 6 of the fulcrum post bears against the underside of the support, being thus constructed so as to permit the support to be freely rocked when it is desired to lift the oar from the water or to lower the same thereinto. v

From the construction described it will be seen that the oar may 'be operated by the oarsman who may be facing the bow of the boat, thereby enabling the oarsman to effectively apply his full force to the handle portion of the oar to eect an eflicient sweep of the spoon or blade portions through the water. The construction of the device is extremely simple, it may be p applied in a very convenient manner to boats'of ordinary construction without requiringany elaborate changes thereto. The construction of the oar support and the sectional oar is such that the latter can be adjusted so that both sections thereof may be .disposed in parallel relation with each other at the opposite sides 'of the gunwale so as `to permit the passage of the boat through narrow passageways. In lifting the oar from the water the handle portion of the oar is pushed downwardly tothe `dotted line position shown in Fig. 7 of the drawing.

I claim v A bow-facing oar'comprising an oar lock having an angular socket, a ulcrum post itted removably in the socket and forming in configuration therewith and held thereby against rotation,4 a head carried by the fulcrum post and provided with a curved surface, a support having intermediate concaved side edges pivotally mounted on the head, oar intermeshing gears, the upper and lower faces of said gears being provided with concentric grooves, a shield plate disposed above the support and provided with an integrally formed depending concavoconveXed guard flanges disposed at opposite sides of 'the intermeshino' surfaces of the gear members and lying ushwith the intermediate concaved edges of said support, means securing said shield plate to said support, and washers carried by said means and disposed between said gears, said support and said shield member.

In testimony whereof'I aiiix my signature in Apresence of two witnesses.

ABRAHAM I. .MENCHERl Witnesses Louis SILAPIRO, JACOB 'fSHAPIRo. 

